Delaina leaned her head on the window and gazed up at the passing trees to the endless daylight. The trees lost their leaves now and were bare for everyone to see. It looked haunting but beautiful at the same time, if that was ever possible. The chill from outside seemed to have come into the car and sent Goosebumps onto her skin.
"The guys were really warming up to you" Reid said suddenly from the driver's side.
"I don't think so. I kept on bringing up Kate and Sarah like an idiot" Delaina muttered.
"They completely understand" Reid told her.
"A couple of hours ago you guys were living on cloud nine not knowing about the dangers around you. It's kept you alive for this long" Delaina responded.
"Delaina, it's nearly gotten us killed this whole timeā¦" Reid trailed off.
"So do you have any idea how to deal with these demons?" Delaina asked.
"I've only just heard about demons a couple of days ago" Reid looked over to her.
"And you think I'm the expert?" Delaina smiled to him.
"I would hope so" Reid responded as he parked the car in the dorm student's parking lot.
"Sorry to disappoint" Delaina told him.
"Caleb will think of something, Delaina" Reid reached out and placed his hand in hers.
"What if he doesn't?" Delaina asked in a small voice.
"He's a lot more courageous than all of us, I'm sure he can think up of something, Delaina" Reid tried to lighten the mood.
"How did Chase die, Reid?" Delaina looked up to the pretty blonde.
Reid sighed, "I don't know"
"What is that supposed to mean?" Delaina's blood suddenly rushed out of her body. "He's not dead"
"They never found his body, Delaina" Reid gripped her hand tighter. "He's still out there"
"That's just perfect. I was kind of hoping for a better answer than that one. Just all of this seems too overwhelming" Delaina ran her hand through her hair.
Reid leaned in until Delaina's nose was slightly touching Reid's as he whispered, "I will never let anything happen to you"
Later that night, Delaina hadn't even thought about touching her books for the classes that she was supposed to be in today. Her mind kept drifting off to when she was in her car with Reid Garwin and how close their faces were and how serious he was about not letting anything harm her. That was when her mind kept on drifting off to things unimaginable like him holding her close to his body and leaning down to kiss her slowly. The thought warmed her chest but sent shivers down her spine.
Jodi opened the dorm door and stared at Delaina, "There you are! I was about to go to the infirmary"
"You could've just called"
"You left your phone here"
"Oh, that's right. I'm so sorry" Delaina sighed, "There are just a lot of things going on right now, Jodi, I had to skip today"
"With Reid Garwin?" Jodi asked slowly with a smile on her face. "It's Pogue's birthday today. The pieces were kind of big enough to put together all on their own"
"Jodi"
"You could've just said that, Delaina" Jodi cut off. "You deserve a couple of days on the wild side. Just don't forget about your education"
"It won't happen again" Delaina told her roommate.
"What am I, your mom?" Jodi glared. "Have fun! Just don't get yourself killed"
Reid tugged Delaina along so hard that she skidded to the ground. She let out a slight yelp from falling as she turned and looked back with wide eyes. Before her eyes could process anything, Reid pulled her back up and continued to run through the woods. Delaina tried her best to keep up but her sides were already on fire as her throat seemed to have not enough room to give her enough oxygen.
Her boots were caked with mud that she felt with each step she took it only dragged her further down. Delaina knew for a fact that the demons were already on their tail. She could hear their war cries as they tried their best to scare Reid and Delaina.
Reid suddenly stopped and wrapped his arms around Delaina in a tight hug. Delaina gasped for air as she tried to remain calm and look for a better chance of escape.
Reid suddenly took Delaina by the shoulders and crouched down to her eye level.
"Run" he told her. "Go as fast as you can over to the nearest road. Don't even stop until you can get into shelter where there are a lot of people. Call Caleb. Make sure to tell him where I am. I'll distract them for as long as I can. I will never let anything happen to you"
That was when Reid cupped her face and kissed her on the lips.
Delaina gasped and sat up right. She wasn't in the woods with Reid anymore; she was in her dorm room. A soft click came from the other side of the room as Jodi glared in the light. Her roommate propped herself up onto her elbow with a concerned look.
"It was just a nightmare" Delaina responded.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Jodi asked.
"Not right now" Delaina shrank back down and brought her legs to her chest.
"You know, my sister used to always have nightmares, Delaina" Jodi said. "I guess that's why I want to become a psychologist. I wonder if that's what you put on your application. To have a roommate who doesn't bother getting up at any time of the night"
"Shut up!" Delaina smiled back. "It was our year to be roommates for our senior year"
"Tania couldn't stand you in junior year" Jodi laughed.
"Jodi, Victoria thought I was possessed or something in sophomore. She made me go with her family to church a couple of times" Delaina laughed. "I'm sure she had holy water under her pillow for me"
"Can you believe it?" Jodi sighed. "We are actually going to be graduating in the spring. I just can't wait to see what happens throughout the rest of the year"
